Firefighters want to extinguish novelty lighters in New York

Firefighter organizations are pushing for a ban on novelty lighters statewide to prevent fires that have led to injuries and deaths, Gannett’s Haley Viccaro reports.

The lighters resemble children’s toys, and kids play with them unaware of the dangers that they pose, said the State Firemen’s Association in a statement.

“Despite their bright colors and stylish designs, novelty lighters are extremely dangerous items that too often land in kids’ hands and, ultimately, lead to tragic, often fatal results,” said Jim Burns, president of the Firemen’s Association.

In 2007 two children under two years old passed away after causing a fire at their apartment in Arkansas with a novelty lighter. The issue is that the lighters are designed to look like toys, the Firemen’s Association said.

They provided a photo of some of them that look like guns, sandals and cell phones.

“A ban on novelty lighters would take our tremendous education efforts one step further by preventing these dangerous objects, which may resemble simple toys, from ever reaching the curious hands of innocent children,” said Salvatore Cassano, FDNY commissioner, in a statement.

Firefighter organizations in the state are collaborating with NYPIRG to raise awareness and call on New York to ban novelty lighters. Fifteen states, including New Jersey and Massachusetts, have some form of ban on novelty lighters, the groups said.